AN ICKENHAM FANFARE
 After Prince William and his new bride signed the register at Westminster Abbey, they received an accolade from Trumpeters of the Central Band of the Royal Air Force. The fanfare, composed specially for the occasion, was written and conducted by another talented Ickenham resident, a member of the Royal Air Force at Northolt.
Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs is Principal Director of the Royal Air Force Music Services. Duncan joined the RAF in 1983 and was appointed to his present position in 2009. Over the years, the military bands that he has led have won numerous awards, as have various civilian bands under his leadership. He continues to play the bassoon today which was the instrument he most closely studied and played as a music student.
Wing Commander Stubbs is happily married and the father of two children. He likes nothing better than holidaying in the Lake District when he manages to “give his ears a rest”. He occasionally attends St Giles’ Church as well as the station church at Northolt.
 How did he come to write the Royal fanfare? “I was invited in February to a meeting at Westminster Abbey where the head of music, knowing I had composed and arranged a lot of music (though nothing quite as important as this), asked me if I’d organise it.
“I took for the theme the motto of 22 Squadron, Prince William’s RAF search-and-rescue unit, which is ‘Valiant and Brave’. That seemed an ideal title to set the tone for the spirit of the occasion. At the end of the fanfare is a reference to the ‘RAF call’. The piece had to last 30 seconds and the performers and I were sworn to strict secrecy before the event. I’m delighted to say that the team performed excellently on the day.”
|
